GOP Rep. Darrell Issa to head Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

The California congressman and frequent critic in the current Congress will take the post in January. Issa plans to seek new subpoena powers for several federal agency watchdogs in an attempt to downsize government spending.

Rep. Darrell Issa, the California congressman who has promised to closely scrutinize the Obama administration, will become chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform in the new GOP-controlled House of Representatives in January, it was announced on Wednesday.

The appointment had been expected. Issa (R-Vista) is the ranking minority member of the committee in the current Congress.

As chairman, Issa will be the leading voice in choosing what to investigate. A frequent Republican critic in the current Congress, Issa has said he wanted to seek new subpoena powers for dozens of federal agency watchdogs as part of a campaign to downsize government spending.

“It’s always easier to be careless with other people’s money, and the fact that Washington has somehow institutionalized waste, fraud and abuse is indicative of how broken this place has become,” Issa said in a prepared statement.